BY VICTOR AHIUMA-YOUNG

“Beyond the New Minimum Wage NMW, Act, of 2011, another critical labour market law of our time is the Employees’ Compensation Act, ECA, 2010.”

These were the words of Comrade Issa Aremu, the General Secretary of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, and a Vice President of the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC.

The event was a Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund, NSIFT, interactive one-day enlightenment session with industrial unions on the implementation of Employee’s Compensation Act, ECA, 2010, in Lagos.

Addressing participants at the programme, Comrade Aremu told his audience that ECA was a bold attempt to bring back social protection for the working people. This was the case in the past when we had National Provident Fund (NPF) that later metamorphosed to NSITF.

According to him, “Accidents and injuries characterise many forms of employment; especially in Construction, Textiles, Chemicals, Iron and Steel Industry, Mines etc. Working conditions in most industries around the world increasingly demand special attention and effort from the international trade union movement.

Every year, some two million men and women lose their lives through accidents and diseases linked to their work. In addition, workers suffer 270 million occupational accidents and 160 million occupational diseases each year.

L_r Acting Managing Director National Insurance Scheme Trust Fund Nistf Alhaji Munir Abubakar with the Vice President NLC Comrade Issa Aremu at the One -Day Interactive Session with the Industrial Unions on the inplimentation of ECA in kaduna Photo by Olu Ajayi.

Precisely because of risks and hazards associated with works in general, some people have rightly observed that many working people are really not living but are actually dying by “”. The importance of health and safety at work cannot be overstated.”

“Failure of government to enforce health and safety standards means that efforts to improve working conditions in one country can be undermined by the flight of production to countries where workplace safety is ignored.

Ignoring occupational health and safety is one way by which international market operators can minimise costs, engaging in a form of “social dumping” at the real costs of workers’ lives. We as unionists must therefore support any efficient legislation and laws aimed at preventing occupational hazards.

Hence the need for protective compensation laws to prevent and compensate for injuries at work. Prevention of course will always be better than cure through compensation.

However, with’ the best of prevention, accidents and injuries are inevitable at work, hence, the need for compensation for occupational health and safety accidents and injuries at work.”

Employees’ Compensation Act

NUTGTWN’s General Secretary noted that beyond the minimum wage, another critical labour market law of our time was the ECA which President Jonathan signed into law on December 17, 2010, to repeal the old and moribund Workmen Compensation Act, WCA, arguing that it “aims at addressing the shortcomings of the 58-year-old WCA.”

He said, “ECA is a law that provides social protection for the working people. ECA provides for a compensatory protection floor for workers who sustain injuries and accidents in the world of work. Accident at work is not about class. With the best of prevention; there will also be accident.

But when accidents happen, what kind of compensation does a worker get? ECA is a bold attempt to bring back social protection for the working people. This was the case in the past when we had National Provident Fund (NPF) that later metamorphosed to NSITF.

As significant as the old schemes were, they were still token and limited in coverage in the wake of mounting current human misery and human de-capitalisation in the land. ECA is a contributory scheme funded with 1 percent contribution of employees’ monthly pay (gross) payable by employers.

The new Act allows for sustainable pool of fund for payment of compensation to employees who suffer from occupational diseases or sustain injuries arising from accident at work place or in the course of employment.

The new law was designed to deliver a platform for “guaranteed and adequate compensation for all employees or their dependants for any death, injury, disease or disability arising out of or in the course of employment.”

“Regardless of the shortcomings, NSITF once registered up to 4.3 million employee’ members and 40,000 employers. It mobilised as much as N36.6 billion pension fund within the 10 years period of 1994 to 2004. This served as basis for the take off of Trust fund Pension pic.

However, NSITF needs to work harder in order to overcome some of the weaknesses observed in the management of the workers’ pension funds. NSITF must certainly improve on its corporate governance to face up to the challenge of the new ECA.

NSITF needs to develop a new data capturing technique for effective management and supervision of the employees compensation fund (ECF).

Happily, NSITF is making the contributors to own the new compensation scheme through mass enlightenment on the implementation and administration of the ECA. Workers cannot own the scheme unless they are properly informed about its operations.

All employers of labour must give effect to the implementation of the ECA by promptly paying and remitting to NSITF the percent employees’ monthly pay (gross).

We equally call on employees and their unions to ensure compliance by their respective employers.

NSITF seeks workers’ support

Earlier, Acting Managing Director of NSITF, Alhaji Umar Munir Abubakar, told the workers that ECA was a silent revolution that took place in favour of workers as it was meant to change in a complete way, the type of benefits a worker was supposed to get after suffering from work-related injuries or diseases.

He said, “We at NSITFare set to start implementing the Scheme in its entirety. It is meant for your own benefit and those of your dependants or survivors in case of death. We need your cooperation for the Scheme to succeed.

You therefore have a duty to ensure that this social benefit that has been approved for you is not in any way hampered or sabotaged. You have a duty to ensure that your employer is duly registered and is remitting contributions on your behalf.

You should also ensure that the medical arrangements to be put in place are working perfectly well as any failure in the medical line may affect the overall success of the Scheme. In the same vein, it is your duty to ensure that we at NSITF manage the Scheme very well and in accordance with laid down procedures.

You should feel free to report to us any failure by our officers in the State Offices or Head Office. Similarly, any failure by the medical personnel appointed by us to implement the Scheme should be made known to us immediately.”

“I have no doubt in my mind that you will do that to enable us serve you better. I wish to thank you for the role you played during the days of the NSITF Scheme and furthermore wish to urge you to play a greater role now.

You will recall that during the Public Hearings on the implementation of this Act, you demonstrated ample enthusiasm and support for the Scheme to be introduced. Now that it has been introduced, there is a further need for us to work hand in hand for its overall success.

You are to monitor your employers’ registration, deductions and remittances and also monitor us to ensure that we are doing the right thing in the right way in implementing the Scheme.”